w V V V w w V w w -- __w _-w 0 w w v w 2 C Thursday, November 8, 2007 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Thursday, November 8, 2007 "7 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Date Opponent Time Date Opponent Time 11/09 Radford 7:00 1/22 Wisconsin 6:00 10/11 Brown Noon 1/27 Michigan State Noon 11/15 Georgetown 7:30 1/31 Minnesota 7:00- Great Alaska Shootout 2/05 Ohio State 7:00 10/21 Butler 7:30 2/09 Penn State 4:00 11/23 E. Wash or Va. Tech TBA 2/14 Iowa 8:00 11/24 Championship Round TBA 2/17 Ohio State 1:00 11/28 Boston College 7:15 2/21 Minnesota 8:00 12/1 Harvard 5:30 2/23-24 Illinois TBA 12/8 Duke 2:00 2/26 Northwestern 9:00 12/12 Oakland 7:00 3/1 Penn State 8:00 12/15 Central Michigan 2:00 3/8-9 Purdue TBA 12/22 UCLA 2:00 Big Ten Tournamen 1/02 Wisconsin 7:00 3/13 First Round TBA 1/05 Purdue 2:00 3/14 Quarterfinal TBA 1/08 Indiana 7:00 3/15 Semifinal TBA 1/12 Northwestern 5:30 3/16 Championship 3:30 1/16 Illinois 8:00 3/20 NCAA Tournament TBA 1/19 Iowa 7:00 *Homegamesinbold Pos. I Wt. Ht. Yr. Hometown Indiana is slated to lead the way in the Big Ten this season. We break down each of Michigan's conference opponents. With so little returning from last season, Beilein must turn to unheralded returners for production. Jevohn Shepherd, K'len Morris and Zack Gibson are poised to step up. r Sophomore DeShawn Sims has had many trials and tribula- tions in his young life. But his experiences have put him on the cusp of being Michigan's next great player. We predict the season, from Michigan to the Big Ten and beyond. We also try our hand at Michigan fantasy basketball. " "" "III(IIII """"""""Ii "1111 """'"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""IIII IIIII "IIIII II IIIIII 111 II III lli 101 III11IIIIIIIIII III~II I IIII I III 1111IIII IIII il1111i l IIIIII 1 Jerret Smith G 195 6-3 Jr. Romulus 2 C.J. Lee G 180 6-0 Jr. Pittsford, N.Y. 3 Manny Harris G 170 6-5 Fr. Detroit 5 K'Len Morris W 185 6-4 Fr. Grand Blanc 11 David Merritt G 170 5-10 Sr. West Bloomfield 12 Anthony Wright F 235 6-6 Fr. Sterling, Va. L 15 Jevohn Shepherd W 210 6-5 Jr. Toronto 20 Adam Block G 180 6-1 Fr. Allentown, Pa. O 22 Ekpe Udoh F 240 6-10 So. Edmond, Okla. 24 Ron Coleman W 210 6-6 Sr. Romulus o 30 Eric Puls F 205 6-10 Fr. Alpena 32 Zach Gibson F .220 6-10 So. Grand Blanc Senior leadership' The dynamics of last year's basketball team made matters worse for Sims, who was already battlingthe emotional bur- den of his younger brother's death. With a senior-laden squad, Sims was already fighting an uphill battle for playing time. Receiving a cold shoulder from the upperclassmen didn't help. On Dec. 28 against Army, former Michigan coach Tommy Amaker benched his starting five in favor of Sims, fellow freshmen Ekpe Udoh and Reed Baker and then-sophomores Jevohn Shephard and Jerret Smith. Once he checked the starters back into the game, Sims says the upperclassman didn't even acknowledge the younger players. The tension between the new and old players was made worse by Amaker's unwillingness to give less-experienced players more time on the court. Sims says he sat angrily on the bench, wondering why the coach wouldn't play him and his younger teammates more often. "(The upperclassmen) didn't really want to play and our coach felt that he had to play them anyway," Sims said. "Even though we were young, we were getting mad on the sideline (thinking) 'Put us back in.' " He wanted to win. More important, he wanted to win immediately. With Sims playing sparingly, the Wolverines suffered through another mediocre season, finishing with another National Invitational Tournament berth. But the year didn't end on a dim note for Sims. While many of his older and experienced teammates mailed it in follow- ing the final regular-season game, Sims improved his play. In his final four games, he averaged seven points and four rebounds, up from his season averages of three and two, respectively. "He probably didn't have the kind of freshman year he wanted on the court," Canada said. "But character-wise and as far as mental fortitude, it's one of those things that God put a test in front of him, and he did a pretty good job dealing with it." Stepping up Sims's ability to push through his freshman season can be understood through his past. "Peedi," as his friends and family call him, grew up on Detroit's east side. "When I needed him to do something it was never, 'Why Ma?' like my other kids did," Pruitt said. "It wasn't a problem with him. I asked him to do something, and he'd do it with no problems." That quick maturation stems partly from his youth. When Sims was just t1 years old, his father was arrested and impris- oned on drug charges. As the eldest of three brothers (he also has an older sister), Sims stepped up to be the man of the house. His quiet tem- perament and humble demeanor made him the perfect fathe- figure for his siblings. "He really looked out for them," Pruitt said. "(He) made sure they did the right things and everything when I wasn't around." But Sims's maturity was evident even before his father's arrest. By the third grade, he already knew he didn't want to continue going to the schools in his neighborhood. It became a personal mission to separate himself from bad influences. Yet, as far away as he could get from the neighborhood he grew up in, Sims has never been too far away from home. He was always willingto sacrifice for his family. Once, when Sims was in junior high, his mother had to work the same day he had a tournament game. There wasn't much of a choice for the junior high student. As Pruitt told him that day, "The bills have to be paid so I need you to stay home and watch your little brothers." But Sims didn't complain. He accepted his responsibility, "with a smile." As he grew older, basketball became Sims's life. But his family was and continues to be the blood that keeps him going. Grand finale Sims worked hard to become the player he was during his senior season in high school, one recruited by both Michigan and Michigan State. "He had that internal drive and developed some fortitude about himself," Canada said. "He learned to intrinsically push himselfratherthanhave external forces, whether itbe coach, family or friends pushing him.-He could push himself." That drive became so intense, Sims became indifferent to the competition he faced in his high school league. Why dominate smaller players, when everyone else expect- ed him to do it, he wondered. Sims wanted to measure up against the top competition. He wanted to play against the best. So according to Sims, high school games weren't about dominating the competition. But his final game was much different. In the Class A State Regional semifinals, Sims's Pershing High School was squaring off against Redford (Detroit) High School. Redford had beaten Sims's squad two of the last three games the two played, including a 65-47 win in the PSL championship. "I just couldn't let it happen again and I figured that if I could do everything in my power to prevent it, I was goingto do (it)," Sims said. With Pershing trailing by 10 points and fewer than two minutes remaining, Sims led a comeback that tied the game and prolonged his high school career. The contest went into double overtime. Pershing lost 73-65. Sims had 35 points. "He wasn't complaining. He wasn't crying or asking for help from anyone else," Canada said. "He just took it upon himself. He put the team on his back." It wasn't Sims's last stand that convinced Amaker to recruit him (Sims's had already signed a National Letter of Intent on Nov. 5, 2005), but it was a moment that indicated a bright future for Michigan basketball's top recruit in the class of 2010. The Michigan basketball team had gone through its sev- enth straight NCAA Tournament-less season; its fifth straight under the direction of Amaker. But there was reason to be excited about Sims. He was third in Michigan's Mr. Basketball voting. He averaged a double-double during his senior year of high school. And even if the fans didn't know it, those who recruited him were happy to have a great character player. "He's a guy that the guys really like and they really take to him," said assistant coach Mike Jackson, who recruited Sims. "He has a personality where people love to be around him and those are obviously the kind of teammate that guys want to have when they're playing college basketball." A new era Soon after the players came back from their summer vaca- tions, Sims and his teammates had just completed new Mich- igan coach John Beilein's track workout at Ferry Field. Sims says that following the entire set, he thought to himself the workouts were going to be easy. He didn't know Beilein was going to make the players do everything again that day. "I saw the gate going out of the track, and I was just con- templating on running home," Sims joked. "ButI didn't want to deal with those consequences." While Beilein's first workout was a shock, each successive one, coupled with the practices and the film work, are help tog. At one time, he expected to be a banger in the paint. Not the 6-foot-8 Sims's new role on the team will require him to play more out on the wings - in addition to crashing the boards and posting up on the blocks. Jackson said this new role requires Sims to come off and read screens, shoot 3-pointers and guard the other team's perimeter guys. Senior Ron Coleman sounded excited about the kind of player Sims will become. "That's great for his game," Coleman said. "That comple- ments his game,because with him cominginnow on the wing, he can play inside-out. He's going to be a versatile player." Both coaches and teammates agree Sims is picking up Beilein's new offensive system the quickest. Sims himself said he loves learning about the gae and adding to what he already knows is making him a much better player. According to Beilein, Sims still has a long way to go, but he believes it will be "pretty sight" once he reaches his full potential. Jackson agreed: "I think he can be as good a player as there is in our league." If his performance against Ferris State is any indication of what is to come, teammates, coaches and players alike have a lot to look forward to. Sims was second in scoring with 14 points and collected two rebounds. He finished 3-for-6 from beyond the arc. "He did a great job coming out and just attacking; going to the rim and shooting his outside shot and just putting it all together," Coleman said. Which brings his story back to the scene unfolding at Crisler Arena last Thursday evening. Sims has already taken his shot and the ball sails toward the net. The Michigan bas- ketball team's season had just tipped off and Sims was at the forefront, taking the first salvo of what fans hope is a barrage of good things to come. He makes the basket. -A C h DeShawn Sims F 225 6-8 So. 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